Everyone is familiar with lavender. Lavender essential oil is one of the most versatile and recognizable natural skin care oils available. It has many, many therapeutic benefits and uses for your skin and hair.

France, Bulgaria, and Ukraine produce the largest amounts of lavender for the skin care industry. There are many different varieties of lavender, each with their own characteristic scent profile. Most commonly, lavender essential oil is steam distilled from the Lavandula angustifolia plant. It has a sweet, floral herbal scent that’s very pleasant and calming. Lavender oil blends well with geranium, cedarwood, bergamot, tea tree, chamomile, sage, clary sage and lemongrass.

A quick story about lavender essential oil.

Dr. René-Maurice Gattefossé, a chemist, was working in his lab when he was badly burned during an experiment. He quickly doused his hand in lavender essential oil and… voila. The burn began to soothe and heal with less scarring.

OK so maybe it wasn’t really quite instantaneous, (this story is popular lore amongst aromatherapists) but his discovery did demonstrate the healing benefits of lavender. It contributed to the writing of his book, Aromathérapie: Les Huiles Essentielles Hormones Végétales. Today, Gattefosse is considered the father of aromatherapy, as we know it today. He coined the term.

Note: Lavender oil is one of the few essential oils that can be used neat, directly on your skin without dilution in another carrier oil or butter. Normally you would never use an essential oil undiluted. Lavender is the exception. If you have sensitive skin, it's still a best to try it while infused in a butter or carrier oil.

In skin care lavender essential oil is can be used to help regulate sebum production, tones skin, treats acne, eczema, dermatitis, prevent scarring and may even stimulate cellular growth and regeneration for anti-aging benefits. It’s antibacterial, antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. Therapeutically, lavender oil is calming, balancing, soothing and toning.